FRP completes Carluccio’s sale to Boparan Restaurant Group

22 May 2020

The Joint Administrators for Carluccio’s Limited have completed the sale of the business to Boparan Restaurant Group (BRG).

Phil Reynolds and Geoff Rowley were appointed on 30 March 2020. Following a marketing process, Carluccio’s brand and 30 sites in the UK have been acquired by BRG which houses well-known brands including Cinnamon, Fishworks, Slim Chickens, Giraffe and Ed’s Easy Diner. Outside of the administration, BRG also acquired Carluccio’s Dawson Street site in Dublin, Republic of Ireland.

The transaction sees more than 800 jobs transferred to BRG.

Unfortunately, 40 sites will not be part of the transaction and will be closed, which will result in the remaining staff being made redundant. The Joint Administrators are working closely with the Redundancy Payments Service to facilitate redundancy payments.

Phil Reynolds, Joint Administrator and Partner at FRP, said: “The COVID-19 lockdown has put incredible pressure on businesses across the leisure sector, so it has been important to work as quickly and as decisively as possible in an extremely challenging business environment to secure a sale, which ensures the future of the Carluccio’s brand in the UK casual dining scene, retains a significant network of sites across the country and, critically, transfers a considerable number of jobs. We wish the team all the best as part of the Boparan Restaurant Group.”

Satnam Leihal, Managing Director of BRG commented; “We welcome Carluccio’s colleagues to BRG. This acquisition is in line with our strategy to grow our restaurant group with quality brands. Whilst it is an extremely challenging time for the sector, we believe quality hospitality businesses will recover in the long term as people return to eating out.”

The Carluccio’s sites which now form part of the BRG estate are as follows: Beverley, Bluewater, Bristol, Cribbs Causeway, Cambridge, Cheshire Oaks, Chester, Chichester, Colchester, Derby, Kingston Bentalls, Leamington Spa, Leeds, Trinity, London-Islington Development Kitchen, Marriott Heathrow, Marriott Regents Park, Richmond, South Kensington, St Christopher’s Place, St Pancras Station, Waterloo Station, Wimbledon; Manchester Piccadilly, Manchester Trafford Centre, Portsmouth, Reading, Sheffield, Solihull, Southampton, Stratford on Avon, Walton on Thames, Dublin- Dawson Street (the latter was not part of the FRP administration).

FRP was advised on the transaction by Lambert Smith Hampton (property), Hilco Appraisal (chattel assets and IP), Ashurst (legal) and Keystone Law (licences).

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